Dick was born around 1644. He the son of Alexander Dick and his wife Helen Rocheid. Alexander Dick was the son of
William Dick of Braid, a statesman who was
Lord Provost of Edinburgh from 1638 to 1640, and who had loaned the city £45,000 in 1646. Dick was a merchant and
Dean of Guild in
Edinburgh. He purchased the Priestfield estate, including
Priestfield House, in 1677. In 1679 he was elected
Lord Provost of Edinburgh under the title of James Dick of Priestfield, in succession to
Sir Francis Kinloch. In 1681/82 he was the
Member of Parliament for Edinburgh. Priestfield House was built by
King James IV's printer,
Walter Chepman. The house had a history of Catholic sympathy, which was tolerated in the Scottish upper classes despite being illegal. In 1681 the original house was burnt down in an anti-Catholic demonstration, and Dick employed the architect
William Bruce to design a new house. The U-plan house, which had a formal garden attached, was not completed and occupied until 1689. It was then renamed Prestonfield House to distance it from the word
priest, with its Catholic associations. Dick died on 15 November 1728. ==Family==